It is known in the art to dispense soaps, lotions, conditioners, and other liquid substances of that general nature, in various ways. These include freestanding pump- and aerosol-type containers or bottles, countertop-mounted pump-type dispensers and wall-mounted-type dispensers.
This invention relates particularly to wall-mounted dispensers of which there are a variety known to the art.
In general, wall-mounted dispensers for material of this type include a back plate and cover which is capable of being opened to permit the dispenser to receive replaceable cartridges or refill packages with the dispenser being a more or less permanent installation in areas such as lavatories, restrooms, food handling areas, etc.
One general type of wall-mounted dispenser which has achieved considerable popularity in recent years is one in which the refill cartridge or package is the bag-in-box type. These generally include a collapsible bag which contains the material and which is itself received in a box made of cardboard or some similar material. The box is capable of being inserted onto a shelf in the interior of the dispenser and then partially opened to expose a tube which is in fluid communication with the bag and which constitutes the liquid dispensing pump of the assembly. This tube carries a nozzle on its distal end which is positioned in the dispenser so as to dispense the material onto the hand of the user when the pump is activated. These dispensers generally have a pivoting pressure bar which can be engaged by the hand of the user to apply pressure on the tube/pump, either by pushing against or pulling against the tube to thus dispense the material through the nozzle.
Examples of patent prior art involving this general method of dispensing can be seen in Bartasevich U.S. Pat. No. 5,265,772; Bell U.S. Pat. No. 5,443,236; Bell U.S. Pat. No. 5,465,877; Sears U.S. Pat. No. 5,625,659; and Schroeder U.S. Pat. No. 5,944,227 and many others.
While dispensing arrangements of this type have proved generally satisfactory, it is believed that certain improvements can be made thereto.
For one thing, it is believed desirable to reduce the force required to actually pump material from the cartridge or reservoir in order to render the unit more user friendly.
For another thing, it is believed desirable to be able to ascertain when the refill requires replacement without having to open the dispenser. To that end, many of these dispensers have sight windows disposed in the cover so that one can view at least a part of the bag from the outside of the dispenser with the cover closed. The difficulty is that, in practice, it is not really possible to obtain a good view through these windows for several reasons. One is that it is generally not possible to position the sight windows low enough down on the cover to accurately ascertain when the refill unit is nearly out of material because of the pumping mechanism usually employed. That is, the tube-type pumps extend below the bag or cartridge so that the window is positioned above the bottom of the bag. Another is that the interior of the dispenser is unilluminated so that it is quite difficult to see into the interior of the dispenser. Finally, as the bags empty, they tend to collapse and wrinkle so that the view of the contents is further impaired. That is, the optimum would be for the window to rest against a relatively flat surface which is not possible once the bag begins to empty.
Inasmuch as many of these dispensers are located in public or commercial establishments and are refilled by maintenance people, it would save considerable time, and thus considerable expense, to provide a means whereby maintenance personnel can, at a glance, without opening the dispenser, ascertain whether refills are required.
It is also the practice with dispensers of this type to fill them with different materials from time to time. That is, the dispenser may, on occasion, contain soap and on another occasion contain lotion, for example. Furthermore, multiple dispensers containing different materials may be located in proximity to each other. Because it is desirable that the end user know precisely the material which he or she is going to receive upon activation of the pumping mechanism of the dispenser, it is believed desirable to insure that a given dispenser can be filled only with refills intended for that dispenser and containing the appropriate material. It is, therefore, believed to be desirable to provide a means for insuring that only the correct refill can be placed into any given dispenser.
Also, with the bag-in-box-type replacement cartridge, the box necessarily is a cubical item occupying a given amount of space. It has been found then that, in shipping quantities of these replacements, considerable space in the shipping container is wasted because of the fairly rigid characteristics of the boxes and it is thought to be desirable to be able to eliminate the box and simply ship collapsible bags of fluid material which makes it possible to ship a far greater volume of actual material in a container of a given size. This also makes it possible to more efficiently utilize the space within the dispenser.
Thus, it has been found that a bag retainer and pump support can be provided in conjunction with the back plate of the dispenser whereby the bag, which, of course, has no fixed shape, can be employed as the refill cartridge itself.
Also, inasmuch as these dispensers are mass produced, it is obviously desirable to provide a dispenser which can be easily and economically assembled. To that end, it has been found that, by providing a unique hinge structure, the base cover and bag retainer and pump support can be quickly and easily snapped together and, once assembled and mounted on the wall, will provide improved resistance to vandalism.
Finally, given that the dispensers are generally durable and securely fixed to the wall, it is thought to be desirable to increase the volume of material available after each refill operation. With the conventional tube/pump arrangement, a significant percentage of the interior space in the dispenser is devoted to accommodating the pumping mechanism. Therefore, it is believed desirable to provide a more compact pumping mechanism located on the lower front surface of the bag so that virtually all of the interior of the dispenser can be utilized to store material.